Even though these hot summer days persist, fall is just around the corner! We have lots coming up to keep sustainability on your mind, including new mugs at the Chili & Beer Fest, fall garden-in-a-box, and a new residential program for more affordable solar. August 21 was also National Honey Bee Day, so take a moment to thank your backyard pollinators for all the hard work they do for biodiversity and plant health. As always, thanks for being a part of making Superior a sustainable, resilient, and vibrant community!

- Town of Superior Sustainability Team

The Town of Superior and the Rotary Club of Boulder Valley are once again hosting the Town's biggest event of the year in partnership with the Superior Chamber and Serendipity Tap & Café on Saturday, Sept. 9, from 2 - 6 p.m. This year's Chili & Beer Fest features Colorado's best funk band, food trucks (selling non-chili items), beer, cider, wine, and seltzer sampling from local breweries, a Ninja-Warrior-themed kids' zone, a dunk tank, local vendors and much, much more! General entry is FREE and includes chili samples.

One Action You Can Take: This year, in addition to the traditional keep-sake glass mug available for Beer Fest sampling, the Town is encouraging the use of reusable chili mugs for chili sampling to cut down on Chili Fest waste. 800 branded ceramic commemorative mugs will be given away on a first-come basis. We are also piloting edible spoons, which will be available by the mugs, and the ACES booth will have a reusable cutlery set giveaway. Come visit us at the Advisory Committee for Environmental Sustainability (ACES) booth for more giveaways and to learn more about all the Town is working on in sustainability!

Have you ever thought about putting solar panels on your roof? Boulder County has partnered with nonprofit Solar United Neighbors (SUN) to bring residents the Boulder County Solar Co-op this fall — a free group to help you go solar. This program is similar to what the Town of Superior ran last year with Solarize Superior but now on a larger scale!

The Boulder County Solar Co-op will help Boulder County homeowners and small business owners learn about solar together and purchase solar panels at a group rate from a single installer.

Together, co-op members will learn about solar energy and leverage their numbers to get competitive pricing and quality solar installations. After a competitive bidding process facilitated by SUN, a group of volunteers from the co-op will select a solar company to complete the co-op's installations. 

Want to learn more? Join Boulder County, SUN, the Town of Superior and other municipalities at our co-op launch event on Monday, Sept.18 at 6 p.m. at the Lafayette Public Library. Light refreshments will be available. Details and RSVP here.

Thanks to the passage of a new state bill, the Colorado Energy Office (CEO) is offering now rebates on new e-bike purchases. Eligible residents can receive a rebate of either $500 or $1,100, depending on their income level. You can redeem the rebate in person or over the phone at participating retailers. The first round of applications ended Aug. 21, but the CEO will announce and open additional application rounds each month until funding is expended. Once the application period closes, selected applicants will receive an email notifying them of their rebate.

Starting April 1, 2024 all Coloradans, regardless of income, will be eligible for a $450 discount on an e-bike purchased from an authorized retailer. For more information on the application process, income eligibility, and other details, please visit the Colorado Energy Office website.

Have you been eyeing all the new EVs on the road but are unsure if they are in your budget? The Colorado state tax credit just increased to $5,000 (from $1,500)! You may also qualify for a federal tax credit up to $7,500. That’s a total of $12,500 in potential tax credits! Visit the EV CO tax credit page to learn more.

The Town is currently coordinating a procurement process to identify a consulting firm to design two solar carport systems: one at Town Hall and another at the Superior Community Center. This process will result in system and engineering design documents which we hope to use to build out more on-site renewable energy at our facilities in the future. Superior has ambitious renewable energy and climate goals in our Sustainability Action Plan, and this project will be an impactful step forward for the Town!

Looking for a little extra color in your garden this fall? Resource Central’s Garden in a Box is a perfect way to spruce up your yard and be water-wise while doing so! You can pick up and plant your new blooms from late August and early September. Visit Resource Central to order your fall kit today.

As the hot weather persists, consider getting your sprinklers evaluated to make sure you’re watering as efficiently as possible. Resource Central will test your system for inefficiencies and provide a customized watering schedule to help you reduce water waste for the rest of this irrigation season and help you start off on the right foot next spring. Sprinkler evaluation appointments are limited, sign up today!

In this section in our newsletter, we focus on one waste-related topic in Superior. To keep it simple, remember the 4 R’s: Reduce the amount of waste you produce, Reuse items as much as you can before replacing them, and Repair and Recycle items wherever possible.

Spotlight: Glass Recycling

Glass is one of the only materials we use that is infinitely recyclable and doesn’t decrease in quality or purity! Because of this, recycling glass has a high impact on reducing our emissions, consumption of raw materials, and energy use. Here are some fun facts:

• New glass bottles and jars can be made with over 95% recycled content
• Recycled glass can become new bottles and jars, but can also be used in fiberglass, to strengthen concrete, beads, and more
• Collecting and recycling glass separately (not throwing it in your curbside bin) increases the recovery rate (its ability to be recycled) from about 60% to nearly 95%

Want to know more? Visit local glass recycler Glass to Glass or watch this short video from National Public Radio's Planet Money on how glass is recycled.

Are you enjoying the Sustainability newsletter? Did you know the Town also sends a Historical Commission, Parks & Recreation, and Superior Sentinel newsletter? You can also subscribe to receive Superior Community Center updates, Town Board information, Marshall Fire news, and more. For more information and to view your preferences, visit the Town's email subscription page.